IAS dishes out US$220 million to acquire CTV ad platform Publica

Integral Ad Science is dishing out US$220 million to acquire Publica, the connected TV (CTV) advertising platform, in a cash and stock transaction. With this acquisition, IAS is accelerating its CTV strategy to help publishers better monetise their video programming across CTV devices, while building new tools to provide advertisers with much-needed transparency into the quality of this inventory.

“CTV viewership and programmatic advertising have skyrocketed, and by acquiring Publica we’re accelerating our growth to offer publishers the tools to capitalise on this opportunity,” said Lisa Utzschneider, CEO, IAS.

She added that advanced data and technology will fuel the future of addressable CTV advertising. "Now video publishers can increase their revenue, and in the future we will help advertisers with a trusted way to measure the results of their growing CTV budgets. In fact, Publica reports that publishers using its platform have seen on average a 30% lift in yield for their CTV inventory. I welcome  the Publica team as we innovate together to increase CTV advertising quality and impact.”  

Meanwhile, eMarketer estimates that advertisers will invest over US$13.4 billion into CTV this year, growing to surpass US$24.7 billion by 2024. By acquiring Publica’s leading technology platform and its proprietary data assets, IAS will help transform CTV advertising by enabling publishers to successfully monetise their video programming, while providing advertisers with a new way to access brand safe and suitable inventory.

Publica powers ad experiences for streaming audiences on their TV screens, connects supply-side platforms (SSPs) to unique CTV inventory, and helps increase publisher yield. Through the acquisition, IAS’s CTV offerings will now include Publica’s unified auction, over-the-top (OTT) header bidding for programmatic buying, audience management, campaign management, server-side ad insertion (SSAI), ad pod automation, and advanced analytics. This acquisition expands IAS’s current CTV capabilities, which include the industry's first CTV verification solution for global invalid traffic (IVT) and viewability across programmatic and direct buying on all apps and providers. IAS plans to introduce a comprehensive brand safety and suitability solution for CTV advertisers and publishers in the coming months, bolstered by Publica’s existing platform and CTV content data.

“Audiences have already switched to watching CTV and more ad-supported content than ever; by joining IAS, we’re offering a trusted platform for brands and publishers to drive more ad dollars towards CTV,” said Ben Antier, co-founder and CEO, Publica. “We have a joint vision to transform CTV advertising with a data-driven approach that benefits the entire industry, while delivering an exceptional user experience.”

Publica delivers over 3 billion ads on CTV every month. By acquiring Publica, co-founder and CEO Antier, now will report directly to IAS CEO Lisa Utzschneider. The Publica brand will become part of IAS’s product portfolio.